The exterior design is nearly identical to the DMP-BD35. Compared with the sleek and glossy designs of Samsung and LG, the DMP-BD60 looks pedestrian, as if it has a job to do, rather than attract attention. The disc tray is in the center of the unit, behind an automatic flip-down door, and farther right is a manual flip-down panel that reveals an SD card slot, a USB port, and some minimal playback controls.

VieraCast is Panasonic’s proprietary online content portal, available on its Blu-ray players and some HDTVs. As of publication time, the available services on VieraCast include YouTube, Picasa, weather, and stock quotes; Amazon Video On Demand is slated to be available in May. The inclusion of Amazon’s streaming service contrasts to competing Samsung and LG Blu-ray players, which offer Netflix streaming on all their players. Both online video services have different strengths and weaknesses. Netflix streaming is free with a subscription, but has a somewhat limited selection of content with few new releases; Amazon has more new releases, but it costs about $4 per rental. Which service is “better” is to some extent a matter of personal preference, but we find Netflix’s service more attractive, especially since your subscription can be used to rent new Blu-ray releases.

A lot of the buyers don’t pay too much attention to the remote control when they are purchasing television or disc players. The remote control for the DMP-BD60 doesn’t change much from the previous remote controls. The top of the remote houses the volume and channel buttons. This can take some time getting used to since most remotes have them in the middle or the bottom. However, there is separate volume button for your receiver. This is particularly convenient if you have receiver set up and don’t have a universal remote control. The numeric buttons are right below the channel and volume buttons. The playback function buttons and directional buttons are in the middle. The menu buttons surround the directional pad. The bottom of the remote houses the special function buttons like Viera Cast and set up buttons. Overall, it’s a solid remote control. It’s not Harmony but you can do much worse.

The DMP-BD60  includes an SD Memory card slot and USB slot, making it easy for the consumer to view and share both digital still images and HD video recorded with an HD camcorder in the AVCHD format.

In order to produce the ultimate picture quality, the Panasonic’s DMP-BD60 Blu-ray players employs high precision 4:4:4 signal technology, which working in tandem with PHL Reference Chroma Processor Plus processes each pixel of the Blu-ray Disc video signal in the horizontal direction, to compliment vertical direction processing. P4HD (Pixel Precision Progressive Processing for HD) is another technology that contributes to the superior picture quality of the Blu-ray players. P4HD processes more than 15 billion pixels per second and applies the optimal processing to every pixel.

The HD DVD player does require users to connect it to their Xbox 360 for playback functionality, but other than that it comes with everything you’ll need to get connected and ready for high-definition viewing enjoyment. Here’s a quick list of the contents of the HD DVD package:

• Xbox 360 HD DVD Player
• Universal Remote Control (Two AA batteries included)
• USB 2.0 Cable
• Power Supply with AC Power Cord
• Installation software and reference materials

Setting up the HD DVD player is a breeze, even for the technically challenged. The setup disc that comes with the package will install all the necessary updates to the Xbox 360 to bring the dashboard up to speed with the new features that support the HD DVD drive’s operation. Once that is done, simply connect the HD DVD player via the USB wire supplied and then connect the power supply to the drive. By powering on the Xbox 360, the HD DVD drive will also come to life and the eject button will light up letting you know it’s getting juice. When the dashboard loads up, the first thing you’ll notice is that the disc tray area of the blade now displays two options to select on the left side of the tray signified by a circle icon split in two halves. One is for playing the current disc in the Xbox 360 DVD drive while the other is for playing the disc in the HD DVD drive. You’ll know which option you have selected as the top half of the circle will light up and the tray displays the DVD logo while the bottom half of the circle will light up with the HD DVD logo.

The HD DVD drive connects to the X360 via a simple USB to mini-USB cable, which comes in the box. Don’t worry about losing the only rear mounted USB port on the Xbox 360 though, because the HD DVD drive gives you two more ports, leaving you one USB connector better off. Once you’ve connected the drive, the X360 will download the necessary update automatically. Once loaded you’ll be greeted with your usual Dashboard interface, but with one small difference. The Eject Tray icon at the bottom is now split into two sections – the top half will eject the DVD drive in the X360, while the bottom half will eject the HD DVD drive.

Also in the box is a full AV remote control – I say full, because it’s a bit longer and more comprehensive than the small AV remote that shipped with early X360 consoles. It’s a good bundle though, considering that even the Premium pack 360 doesn’t come with a remote control anymore.

Great design makes the Sennheiser MX-90-VC Style Stereo Earphones a real inspiration. The innovative holding systems not only look extremely elegant, they’re comfortable to wear, too. High-quality materials and the specially tuned damping system with its detailed sound reproduction complete the picture. Ear adapter set and rubber buds for individually matching different ears 1.2m symmetrical connecting cable Audio connector - 3.5 mm right-angled stereo mini-jack plug in gold Dynamic Transducer Frequency response - 18-22,000 Hz 64-Ohms Impedance Less than 0.1% THD 117 dB SPL (1 kHz, 1 Vrms) Weight - 12 grams

The MX90 VC is another of Sennheiser’s new pairs of earbuds. Sporting their innovative winged design, they hold firmly in your ears and provide audio that is well above the quality of a typical earbud. While we still recommend over the ear models for true high quality listening, the MX90 won’t disappoint the average listener.

As with the MX55 which we looked at recently, the MX90s are designed with a special wing that extends from the tip of the earbud. This wing is covered with a rubber seal, and slips comfortably into one of the top grooves of your ear. Sennheiser’s intent here was to lock the earbuds in place, as a typical earbud design doesn’t sit firmly in your ear. The end result is a pair of headphones that are great for fast paced activities like jogging or cycling.

The design is reasonably comfortable, although it takes a little getting used to. After an hour we barely noticed the wings were there. The buds themselves are comfortable as well, with interchangeable pads of different sizes and textures, allowing you to achieve the best fit for you. As usual, Sennheiser do not disappoint with regards to sound quality either. While we still feel an over the ear model like the Koss or Sennheiser’s own is a better choice if the quality of the audio is your top priority, the size, convenience and price of earbuds often make them an attractive option.
Technical Details

• Includes earphones, volume control, and carrying case
• Convenient accessories such as volume controls and stylish carrying cases
• Specially tuned damping system ensures detailed sound reproduction
• High-quality materials accentuate the unique design
• Innovative holding design (Twist-to-fit system) ensures best possible fit

Weighing in at a hefty US$30, these are by far the cheapest active noise cancelling phones on the market, with or without a pedigree. They are of the canalphone types first popularized by the Sony MDR-EX70s and EX71s. Philips ups this by adding in an active noise cancelling circuitry unit. As you can see in the picture above, the microphones are on the side port of the drivers. The small breakout box does the NC magic and pipes the sound back to the drivers. The drivers use the “universal” gaskets used by Sony, Panasonic, Ultimate Ears, etc. Generally, the better gaskets from Ultimate Ears served me well with the Sony phones (EX90s), though with this particular set, they were more of a hinderance. The standard medium works well enough.

Ergonomics is rather interesting. It is of the Y-cord variety, though a rather new take on it: The breakout has single cord for the 3.5mm plug and single cord for each of the drivers. You can do cord management with a slider type thingy on the driver side of things. However, the cord to the 3.5mm jack is a bit short, and the cords to the driver too long. Other than that, the ergonomics on this is no better or no worse than other NC type buds. Thanks to the sliding mechanism (which is a piece of rubber, more or less), you can minimize microphonics a bit.

Now for the nitty gritty, the sound quality. You can do a lot worse for $30, and they include the venerable EX71s. The overall sound is balanced, though the NC adds background white noise, which is par for the course. The treble is a bit out of control (brighter than average, and very unrefined), while the bass is nice and tight, given the right seal. The vocals/mids don’t get too lost here, just being congenial with the bass and the trebles. Soundstaging could be much better. It’s too 2D-ish and is a bit claustrophobic at times, a little too intimate at others. It is still heaps better than the EX90s EX71s (Someone please slap me when I say something this stupid), probably slighlty worse than the Panasonic HJE50s, which are about the same price as these.

The SHN2500 advertises “70% less external noise.”  However, during the little amount of time I could bear to wear them, they didn’t reduce external noise at all.  The noise-canceling unit just smoked out room noise with a combination of its own white noise and a low hum in the range of 123 Hz.  Consequently, all your favorite albums now sound fuzzy.  There’s nothing like listening to Abbey Road with some nice white noise to fill in those awful gaps.

The other thing the noise replacement feature does is raise the volume.  Make sure you have your device’s volume set down low before engaging the noise replacement.

If nothing else about the SHN2500 had turned me off, it feels as though someone just punched me in the ears.  To be fair, I’m often told I have oddly-shaped ear canals, and in-ears never really rest comfortably in them.  However, I don’t recall throbbing pain after using other in-ears.  I’d like to think I’m old enough to follow directions, so I have no explanation other than poor design for these painful things.

Tightness is not a problem with these phones because of the vinyl-wrapped metal headband. This is great because it’s impossible to overextend them–you just bend them back into shape with no trouble.  The Sheckler Signature model of these phones is the least expensive by at least 20 dollars when I bought it (maybe his sponsorship contract ended?). The red color had gotten lots of compliments and the skater’s signature isn’t out of place at all.

New from Panasonic Japan comes the retro style RP-HTX7 with leather style headbands and high quality piano painted large, closed headphones. Not to be confused with conventional looking headphones, these are stylish lookers. Large aperture 40mm drive unit for clear sound reproduction and powerful bass. Cord length of 1.2 meters suitable for remote and non-remote portable players. Unlike the basic American version, the Japanese RP-HTX7 also comes in original Japanese color combinations (ie. light blue, beige headband) with a 2 meter extension cordng and additional accessories.

Specifications

• Type: Encapsulated, Dynamic
• Driver Unit: 40mm
• Magnet: Neodymium
• Impedance: 40 ohms
• Sensitivity: 99 dB/mW
• Power Handling Capacity: 1000mW
• Frequency Response: 7 - 22,000Hz
• 1.2m cord with gold-plated stereo straight mini-plug

Accessories
2 meter Extension Cord, Stereo Standard Plug, Carrying Pouch